Question 1

What are the types of NFL bets you can make?

Accepted Answer

The six main types of NFL bets, also called mainline markets, are <0>moneyline bets, <1>point spread bets, <2>over/under bets (also called total bets), <3>futures, and <4>player props.

Question 2

What is an NFL Moneyline?

Accepted Answer

A moneyline is the most simple concept to follow in sports betting, in terms of different bet types. It is simply betting on a team to win the game outright. Your team could win by 1 point or 50 points, it could require overtime or be done in regulation - all that you are betting on is the direct outcome of the game. The team with a - sign next to its odds is said to be the favorite and the team with the + sign next to its odds is the underdog. Speaking of odds, while the concept is simple the strategy of betting moneylines gets a little more complex. The odds directly determine how much you need to stake to win a certain amount of money. If the LA Rams are -275 favorites over the Chicago Bears, you would have to bet $275 to win only $100. Conversely, the Bears are +200 underdogs a $100 bet would net you a $200 profit if they were to win.

Question 3

What is an NFL Point Spread?

Accepted Answer

When you bet on an NFL point spread, you’re betting on the margin of victory (or defeat) as opposed to the outright winner of the game. Let’s say you bet the LA Rams -3.5 vs the Chicago Bears. This would mean that to win your bet the Rams would need to win by at least 4 points. Conversely, if you bet the Bears +3.5 they don’t actually need to win the game, they just need to lose by less than 3 points or win outright. This is called covering the spread, and it is applied to both favorites (- next to point spread, called “giving points”) and underdogs (+ sign next to point spread, called “getting points”). If your NFL point spread bet wins, your team covered the spread.

You’re probably noticing that most point spreads have the same odds on either side, unlike moneylines. This is because rather than use the odds to make bets even on each side, they use the point spread to even things out by having the better team have to cover a larger margin of victory. Bettors beware though, there is still juice, or vig baked into these odds as well. This is the tax that sportsbooks collect on each bet. Typically you’ll see odds of -110/-110 on either side of the point spread, implying that based on that point spread it’s a 50/50 chance on either side, minus the vig.

Question 4

What is an NFL Over/Under or Total?

Accepted Answer

Betting an Over/Under or Total in the NFL is one of the more popular types of bets you can make. A Total, or Over/Under is a bet on the combined total score of the game (hence being called Totals) of both teams. If the Total for the Rams vs Bears example above is set at 41, you are betting that at the end of the game the total of the Rams points and the Bears points would be over or under (hence being called Over/Under) the number of 41. If the final score is Rams 21, Bears 14, the game is said to have gone Under (total of 35 less than 41). If the final is Rams 28, Bears 21 the game is said to have gone Over (total of 49 > 41).

If the final score is Rams 28, Bears 13 the game is said to have Pushed (total of 41 = 41). Pushes can happen in both Point Spreads and Totals. If this occurs, bettors on both sides get their money back. You’ll often see Over/Unders and Point Spreads set at non-whole numbers, say 41.5. That extra 0.5 is called the hook. Spreads or Totals that have the hook prevent a push from happening but bring in the possibility of winning (or losing) by that extra half a point.

Question 5

NFL Betting Strategies

Accepted Answer

Now that we’ve outlined the most popular types of NFL bets, let’s go through some profitable NFL betting strategies to help you win more money betting on the NFL!

• Check NFL Injury Reports - NFL injuries can happen frequently and often aren’t announced until shortly before kickoff. By closely monitoring the injury reports you can get in before the lines start moving in one direction or the other based on the news.

• Scheduling Advantages - The NFL is a long grind of a season, 17 brutal games in all. There are many advantages to understanding a team’s spot within the schedule and how to use that to influence your betting decisions. The schedule is a mix of divisional games (home and away) and games against a specified division that each is matched with, season by season. This means that not every NFL team plays against each other every season. As a bettor, you can use things like strength of schedule, or upcoming games to your advantage in deciding who to bet on.

• Live Betting NFL Games - Live betting is a great way to make the game you’re watching more interesting, but it also offers bettors a way to hedge out of (or double down on) bets made before the game. There are a couple of important things to note when live betting NFL games, though. You should always try and live bet NFL games during stoppages in play or commercial breaks, as the lines during live-action are often way more volatile. Additionally, bettors can also take advantage of in-game momentum swings - especially early in the game. A team may come out hot and go up by two touchdowns early in the first quarter of the game, which will drastically impact live odds, despite there being lots of game left.

Question 6

Where to bet on the NFL?

Accepted Answer

Most importantly, to bet on the NFL you need to be signed up for sportsbooks to be able to actually place some bets! List of our favorite sportsbooks are below: - <0>Caesars Sportsbook - <1>BetMGM Sportsbook - <2>BetRivers Sportsbook - <3>PointsBet Sportsbook - <4>Unibet Sportsbook - <5>FanDuel Sportsbook - <6>DraftKings Sportsbook

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